Search Results for: vfr

The National Transportation Safety Board released its preliminary report on the July 26 fatal crash of a Challenger CL600-2B16 on approach to Truckee-Tahoe Airport (KTRK) in California. The twinjet was destroyed and all six on board died after the crew lost control on a circling approach in marginal VFR conditions, largely due to smoke from […]

Florida Tech has announced that it has become the first U.S. university to own and fly an electric aircraft with the acquisition of a Pipistrel Velis Electro. While the model is not yet FAA-certified, the university intends to use the aircraft to “give students the opportunity for experiential research with cutting edge technology.” According to […]

I can’t remember what I had for lunch yesterday but I know exactly where I was on July 17, 1999. I was standing on the ramp at Waterbury-Oxford Airport in Connecticut pre-flighting an F33 one of my students had loaned me. I was flying down to Cross Keys, New Jersey, to go skydiving. A lineman […]

Shopping the market for a fun, reasonably affordable and easy-to-fly two-placer? Add the Ercoupe to the list of potential candidates. Nearly 82 years later, owners still appreciate the Ercoupe’s intended design as an exceptionally safe airplane that’s resistant to stalls and spins. But there’s more bragging rights. It’s really the first successful production GA airplane […]

It’s hot. The air is a muddy bisque of pine smoke from Canadian wildfires, making for freakish sunrises and sets, dotted with multi-colored flaming orbs. If I didn’t know better—and I rarely do—I’d swear this was the CGI backdrop for a rejected George Lucas student film project, but its weirder. It’s Iowa. Between EAA’s mass swoon […]

The National Aeronautic Association (NAA) has announced plans to hold a cross-country air race for electric aircraft. According to the association, the 1,000-NM cross-country race will be a resumption of the Pulitzer air races first held in the early 1920s with the winner to be awarded the Pulitzer Trophy. The Pulitzer Electric Aircraft Air Race, […]

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — The PlaneEnglish Aviation Radio Simulator (ARSim), already used widely by general aviation pilots to master radio communications, will now be deployed to train future U.S. Air Force pilots thanks to a recent $2.4 million, 3-year contract. Under the contract, the U.S. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center Simulator Branch will fund […]

From time to time, pilots are confronted with a set of circumstances posing a significant challenge to their ability to complete a mission. It might be a mechanical problem, but it most often involves uncooperative weather. The time-honored act of launching into poor weather to “take a look” sometimes works out, but the chances of […]

In an effort to boost international sales, Icon Aircraft said at AirVenture this week that it will certify its A5 in the primary category later this year and is offering new appearance and equipment packages. Although the company hasn’t yet achieved its ambitious initial sales goals, it has retrenched and reorganized for more efficient production […]

AVweb’s General Aviation Accident Bulletin is taken from the pages of our sister publication, Aviation Safety magazine. All the reports listed here are preliminary and include only initial factual findings about crashes. You can learn more about the final probable cause on the NTSB’s website at www.ntsb.gov. Final reports appear about a year after the […]